03 March 2014 - The Philippine Consulate General participated in the University of British Columbia (UBC) Southeast Asia Roundtable entitled “The Young and the Restless, Challenges to Today’s Southeast Asia” on February 27 at the UBC Institute of Asian Research.
The Roundtable Discussion was organized by the UBC Centre for Southeast Asian Research and Gado-Gado Indonesian Students Association, Seri Malaysia Club, Singapore Students’ Association, Thai Aiyara Club and UBC Philippine Studies Series. It was attended by History 382- Post Colonial Southeast class of UBC and other invited guests.
The featured speakers included Consul General Neil Frank R. Ferrer, Dr. John Roosa, Associate Professor of the UBC Department of History; Dr. Aim Sinpeng, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Postdoctoral Fellow, McGill University Department of Political Science; Ms. Joy Yap, Immediate Past President of UBC Singapore Students Association; and Mr. Justin Yee, President of UBC Seri Malaysia Club and moderated by Ms. Jason Salim, Undergraduate Research Fellow of UBC Institute of Asian Research. The Roundtable was also attended by Dr. Brian Job, Acting Director of the UBC Institute of Asian Research, who gave the opening remarks.
Consul General Ferrer described the youth’s participation in major social and political movements in the Philippines, including the bloodless revolution of 1986 and the transition from President Marcos to President Aquino.
“The youth is a critical part of Southeast Asia especially in the envisioned ASEAN Community by 2015. The youth comprises 60% of the region’s population”, said Consul General Ferrer. He also underlined the importance of providing quality education for the youth and the need for productive employment once they graduate.
The Consul General noted that the youth has a critical role in promoting the region’s cohesiveness and sustaining economic growth and development in the future.
The issues of migration, sex, freedom of information as well as the power of social media (e.g., facebook, twitter) were also tackled during the open forum.
The forum was a good platform to familiarize the students and the academe of the growing importance of Southeast Asia. END
